Horizons - Parkway Drive .... An album review

I just finished writing this review for Parkway Drive's new album. It's going to be published on The Dwarf. I'll probably be doing another rewrite of this review for publication in Focalpoint. Either way, I'm pretty happy with it. Only three more album reviews, one more live review, and an interview transcript to write up tonight! Ha!

Let the reviewing begin now ...

If you are a fan of heavy music, you have probably encountered Parkway Drive. Their debut album, Killing With A Smile, rewrote the sound of Australian metalcore, prompted a bunch of kids to form copy-cat bands, helped put idyllic Byron Bay on the hardcore map, and arguably started a whole new music scene. For any band, let alone five guys from Byron, this is a huge feat to have to follow up, so the release of Parkway's second album, Horizons, has been one of the most anticipated new releases of 2007.

In its own right, Horizons, is a better than average album. It is technically adept metalcore and an excellent demonstration of formulaic songwriting at its best. The guitar riffs chug along nicely, the breakdowns are punishing, and the lyrics are screamed and spoken with all the intensity and anger that would be expected from vocalist Winston McCall. This, however, is the crux of my problem with this album. It is good, but there is something terribly contrived about it. It is precisely what we expect from Parkway Drive.

There are moments where you have flashes of deja vu back to Killing With A Smile. The lead single, “Boneyards” has moments where it throws back to “Guns for Show, Knives for a Pro”,except that it is slightly heavier and the breakdowns are a bit more brutal. The same could be said for the entire album. At points, during songs like “Boneyards” and “The Siren's Song”, the songs sound more like the band have written them with the intention of making them sounds like heavier and more brutal versions of songs on Killing With A Smile.

Do not make the mistake of thinking that I dislike this album completely. In a genre that is fast becoming over-saturated with cookie cutter bands trying to sound like their heroes, Parkway Drive still do metalcore better than anyone else in the Australian scene, and are easily as good as the best of their American and European counterparts. Their music and live reputation all testify to this. As do the moments on Horizons that are the most memorable and most impressive.

The best moments on Horizons are when Parkway Drive are not trying to be heavier and harder, but instead are at their most melodic and most interesting. “Idols and Anchors” was the first song on the album that grabbed my attention and held it, long after I had turned the CD off. Soon this was replaced with “Carrion”. Both these songs are heavy and do have brutal breakdowns aplenty, but they also feature interesting vocal lines, and melodic guitars that add a real atmosphere to the song, making the vocals seem more earnest.

To me, Horizons is an album that represents a band still finding their sound and their comfort zone. It is a technically adept album and is a perfect representation of good metalcore. It is the work of an Australian band that has, rightfully so, made an impact on the international music scene. But it is still lacking in originality, cohesiveness and strength. Perhaps album number three will finally be the culmination of everything that Parkway Drive can be?